[Anonymous]

[DisgustedofSwieqi]

Posted on behald of Ausline.

Has anyone seen the new northern summer schedules for QF/BA on the kangaroo route?

QF – 1205 DAILY LHR- SIN/SYD A380 BA – 2125 DAILY LHR/SIN 744 BA – 2135 DAILY LHR/SIN/SYD 777 BA – 2200 DAILY LHR/BKK/SYD 744 QF – 2205 DAILY LHR/SIN/MEL A380 QF – 2215 DAILY LHR/BKK/SYD 744 QF – 2230 DAILY LHR/HKG/MEL 744

Note: Time change QF HKG 2230 6 departures including QF A380 ex T3 between 2125 and 2230. One has to wonder if BA/QF and T3 can handle this volume.

[Binman62]

I had heard of the changes and agree you have to wonder about the capacity to handle this operation in T3. The lounge will again be like the zoo of T4 before they finally moved T3.
The OZ route has be the poor relation for BA in particular for some time.
Moreover I also question the commercial sense. BA/QF are supposed to be in an alliance, though that is questionable in T3 as anyone who has ever had a problem will attest; so surely competing with the lunch time departures of CX, SQ etc makes some sense. To have 3 flights to HKG, 2 to BKK and 3 to SIN in the space of 3 hours is barking mad. (yes I know BA to HKG is T5)
I have always liked QF lunch time operations flights to OZ and the Far East because I prefer day time flying, but it look like it will now have to be CX. I would rather forego the extra miles given by BA and QF to ensure I arrive in OZ the evening rather than at 5am.

[Potakas]

Agree with you Binman, i believe the most appropriate would be to schedule their flights as they did with AA for the LHR-JFK route, although i don’t know if there are any restrictions with their slots or departure-arrival times , because i don’t thing it makes any sense.

[wanula1]

The reason for the change to evening for the QF Lon/HKG/Mel flight was to allow better onward connections from HKG with Qantas. Currently the Lon lunchtime flight can only connect with Sydney (also an AF code share).

However with the new timings it allows connections to SYD (evening flight), Brisbane and Perth both of which are QF evening services. If you wanted to connect to Perth or Brisbane on the previous flight you had about 12 hours in HKG.

Also the AF flight that arrives late afternoon into HKG can now also connect to Melbourne, although they lose the morning connection for the early arrival AF service.

Finnair have also moved their HKG service to arrive early evening rather than morning so additional connect there, but previously you could have connected with CX to Melbourne anyway.

QF also market these services with a BA flight code so it gives BA back 3 evening flights to HKG. although from two different terminals!

However it will be a shame to lose the lunchtime QF as it now means CX only if you need an early arrival into HKG. I do think that OneWorld could do a better job of aligning connections at some of their key hubs such as Hong Kong

[JohnPhelanAustralia]

As an Australian, I have never understood the obsession that QF (and other airlines) have with the 5am arrival into Australia ! I hate it with a passion, but almost every QF flight from America, Europe and Asia arrives into Australia between 5am and 6am.

Not only does it annoy pax like me, but it also creates a huge – and unecessary – backlog at immigration; people tend to sprint from the gate to get to immigration to beat the next planeload.

I’ve always preferred the lunchtime departure from LHR (which you can still do if you want to go via SIN, but not via HKG). But it’s the same problem if you’re leaving LAX or SFO – almost all QF departures are timed between 10pm and midnight, which makes life difficult if you’re staying in hotels, because you don’t really need to check out until early evening.

I normally pay for the extra night to get around this, but it’s annoying, as I much prefer to depart – and arrive – at civilised times !

[Hippocampus]

I too prefer the lunctime departures from LHR to Australia.

Note the LHR-HKG segment of QF’s LHR-HKG-MEL service cannot be booked separately under a BA code.

[JordanD]

To settle some myths, HKG is not part of the JSA, hence why LHR-HKG is allowed to operate from different terminals at Heathrow, is not marketed jointly and is not codeshared.

As for the arrival times into SYD and departure times from LHR, one thing comes to mind: QF & BA have been ploughing the route for years. They have competitors including VS, CX, SQ, who have similar flight departure schedules which (with connection where appropriate) arrive in SYD at the same time. Why? Because clearly that’s what passengers want. Many people want to only ‘lose’ one full day on their journey across the globe, rather than the nearly two that a lunchtime depature ex-LHR is.

Flight schedules are never perfect for all the people, all the time. Sometimes they benefit the airlines more than the consumer – in which case the consumer takes their trade elsewhere. Other times the consumer benefits as well as the airline, in which case we are all happy.

The schedule above clearly works for BA, QF and the may passengers they carry and they clearly feel that any schedule change would not be for the benefit of those passengers.

[Travellator]

So 21.25 a 747 at 21.35 a 777 at 22.00 a 747 at 22.05 a 380 at 21.15 a 747 and 22.30 a 747.

I dont think T3 will cope never mind the BA Galleries lounge – suggest any BA Silvers use the CX lounge !

[VintageKrug]

For my next Sydney trip I have decided to try Qantas’ noon departure, via SIN, which I have not tried before.

I have heard glowing reports about the A380 seat in F, although also heard some service issues with the dedicated A380 crews (though I understand these have now been resolved).Certainly the late night UK departures are best if you just need to have a meeting soon after you arrive.

[Binman62]

Jordan D…The myth is that schedules are built around passenger demand. Most schedules are built around slots and access to those slots in combination with aircraft utilisation and lastly terminal contraints at both arrival departure and transit points. The latter is ceratinly true at Heathrow and Sydney where the infrastaructure is wholly inadequate to meet the pressures placed on it at key points in the day.
I would have to agree that One world seems less about the customer and more about not being Star. That the connections ex HKG on One world are so poor is testament to the awful planning and co-ordination between members. Ad it is not just HKG. You cannot connect smoothly or quickly via LAX NRT HKG SFO YVR EZE CPT or JNB. All of which are alternatives to the usual SIN BKK route to OZ, Indeed BA do not serve ICN which is the great circle route to OZ and would probably offer the fastest route if timetables could be aligned.
It has to be acknowledged that yeilds to OZ are not great and much of the traffic is price concious however I would have thought that better coordination at transit points would have allowed carriers to better manage inventory and provide more civilised arrival and departure times.

VK…You will love the A380 lunch time departure…….12 hours to enjoy the facilities……the service is great, if a bit informal and the wine selection excellent

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